Teachers' Resources

Your first lesson should always be the Mandatory Lesson or a review of that lesson.

If you have time for only one other lesson, please make that a review of the story (or plot line) of the play. The Countess Maritza is singing theater. For the history of this art form, go to this link. There is a synopsis provided for your use.

Language Arts
Critic
Have your students write a column of criticism of the play. Be sure they support their opinion with data from the performance. Be sure to make this assignment before they attend so they can be thinking about it as they watch the performance. Choices could include the music as performed by the orchestra, the music as performed by the vocalists (either collectively or individually), the sets, the staging and the directing. Have your students read several newspaper columns before they attend the performance so they can be familiar with the professional's manner of critiquing.

Rewrite/revise

Have your students' revise of rewrite a portion of the play that they either did not like or that they felt would be strong/funnier/better if written differently. Have the remainder of the class offer opinions on whether they think the revision is an improvement.

Write new lyrics

Have your students write new lyrics for one of the songs in the play. The song Vienna Mine could be rewritten for another place. Be sure the students choose a place that they are familiar with and utilize details from that place. Have the other students see if they can identify the new location. Childhood Memories should also be a song that students could rewrite. Be sure they notice that it is a duet. They should maintain that format.

Character Study

Compare Tassilo to a leading character in a story you have studied in class. Tell how he is the same as that character AND how he is different. Which character is more interesting? Why? Be sure to cite examples to support your opinion. Compare Maritza in the same way.

Author Study

Your students should know that singing theater is a collaboration between the author (librettist) who writes the words and the composer (lyricist) who writes the music. Investigate the relationship between Emmerich Kalman and Alfred Grünwald and Julius Brammer. As you study these three men, look for similarities in their life experiences. All of these people were affected by World War II and the rise of Hitler and the Nazis. Describe how that impacted their lives.

Humanities
Nobility and the class system
The leading characters in the play are members of the ruling class. Describe the various levels of nobility in one of the countries you have studied. This play takes play after the end of Austrio-Hungarian Empire. If you have studied that era, use that for your reference. If not, look at modern nobility, e.g. England.

Treatment of Gypsies
Discuss the treatment of Gypsies over time. Compare their treatment in reality and their treatment in the play. Is the play accurate, based on your research? Give examples to support you premise.

Gypsies vs. Blacks and Latinos in America

Compare and contrast the treatment of Gypsies in Europe and the treatment of blacks and Latinos in America over a similar time frame (length of time vs. actual dates). Which group had the worst treatment? Why, what is the evidence? Which group has made the most progress socially? What is the evidence? Which group could assimilate most readily into a society without being noticed? Why? Did that group take advantage of that fact? Why or why not? What is your evidence? Predict what will happen to each group in the next fifty years. Support your opinion with evidence.

Map Skills
Use one or more of the links provided to find a map of the Austrio-Hungarian Empire. Compare that map to Europe today. Locate the countries that are still in existence. Determine which countries have changed names and/or boundaries since that time. Explain the major causes of those changes. Some of them have made several changes. Be sure you make note of all of the major ones.

Fortune Telling
The Gypsy Manja tells a fortune by reading a palm. Have you ever seen an advertisement for fortunetelling? Look in the local paper and telephone directory and see if you find them. (Look under physic healers and spiritual healers. )What kinds of fortune tellers did you find? Do people truly believe in fortune tellers? Do any of the advertisements look like Gypsies? If you have seen fortune tellers at the fair or in the park, do they look like people think Gypsies look? Why do you think they sometimes dress like that?

Fine Arts

This play relies heavily on ethnic music and dance. Study the waltz and the czardas. How are they alike, how are they different? Which one of them is more of an ethnic dance? What is your evidence? Which of the songs is/are probably drawn from ethnic music? What is your evidence? Does the use of ethnic/national music and dance affect the play? Is it a positive or negative affect?

Costumes
Write a review of the costumes. Include such things are your opinion of their authenticity, their effectiveness, and how they help or hinder the success of the play. Draw a new set of costumes for this play. Be sure to write a justification for the changes you make. Be sure to think of the constraints such as budget and ease of use by the performers. Also, costumes must be reused by different people at other venues (rentals).

Set Design
Design a new series of sets for this play. Be sure to write a justification for your design. Remember, things such as budget and size of stage area affect what sets are used. Also, all sets must be portable as many companies rent sets and all companies must store their sets for reuse.

Operetta
Countess Maritza is an operetta. Explain what that means. What would have to happen to make this into an opera? Do you think it would be successful as an opera? Support your opinion with evidence from the performance. Could it be converted into a play that was not musical? Why or why not?

Careers
There are many people other than performers involved in this kind of production. There are two links to help you here. The first link (Creating an Opera) will tell your students about creating the performance itself. There are numbers of people who are involved in this process. The second link (Unsung Heroes) will provide you with the people who are rarely, if ever, seen. Have your students look at this and determine an area that interests them. Have them research the opportunities in that area and write a report on it.

Return to Countess Maritza Home Page

Revised October 2005
Please credit Lyric Opera San Diego when using this material.